Volunteering a passion for Musikfest

Jared WestheimSpecial to The Morning Call

For the corps of volunteers and vendors who work behind the scenes to bring Musikfest to life, the 10-day festival is more than music, food and people having a good time as they stroll from platz to platz. To these enthusiasts, Musikfest is a passion.

This year, 2000 volunteers and 160 vendors are working behind the scenes to make this Musikfest the best yet. Kim Plyler, Director of Marketing and Communications noted that 35% of the volunteer force is brand new, a segment of the force that has a high turnover rate. But many of the remaining 65% are the fest's core, returning to help man the food stations, beer tents and safety crews since the festival's inception 22 years ago.

Together these volunteers and vendors form the beating heart of the festival. Musikfest would simply be unable to function without them. These are their stories:

Take Bob Moyer for instance. He has worked at Musikfest for 22 years  since the first Fest - and he absolutely loves it. "The people who work here are all wonderful, like a big family," he said.

Toting a mug in one hand and gesturing with the other, it appears that his love for beer got him a position at one of Musikfest's famed beer tents. "No, it's water," he said, "I haven't touched a drop of beer since 1999 when I was first diagnosed with diabetes."

For years, Moyer has supervised the Volksplatz beer tent, which he proudly boasted has the coldest beer at the festival.

Moyer described a regular day on the job. "In the morning we get up and check all the barrels to make sure that there's enough beer to get through the day. After that we begin tapping the beer and haul in the ice," Moyer explained.

But the hard work at the beginning of the day hasn't ever discouraged him. "The day shift is great," he said, "I have yet to throw anyone out."

Cindy Johnson artist from Take a Gander, sometimes wishes they did.

Johnson is just one of the many vendors who work at Musikfest every day it runs. She lamented that Musikfest, and the group of people attending, has changed so much throughout the years.

"Recently, we've had a lot more 18-22 year olds running around this place," she explained, "It's good for the festival because they buy more beer, but it's bad for the vendors because they don't buy as many goods."

"(Our demographic) has really changed over the years. Sometimes we vendors stand around and laugh at some of the craziness going on," she said.

Johnson gave a strange example. "Our store sells inspirational signs, you see. So, a lot of people think I'm sort of a holy woman or something," she laughed.

"We get people coming in here asking us to pray for their grandson, and then they tell us a terribly sad story. They'll even come in and sob about their son who just died," Johnson said, "Sometimes people just need to unload their heartache and move on."

Rose DiSireno has volunteered at Musikfest for 20 years and waxed nostalgic about the festival's old layout. "We used to work on the ground here. We didn't have this asphalt. We put hay down in the tents, which weren't nearly as good as these are now," she said.

"People miss the old days, it was more intimate back then." She added.

DiSireno is just one member of an aging volunteer population that many expressed concern about. Volunteers explained that some sections of the festival are having trouble attracting younger members of the community into volunteer positions.

Timothy Cook is one of the few young additions to the volunteer Fest team. Cook works as part of the Riverplatz lighting crew. It's his first year working at Musikfest.

"We help to make sure everything goes smoothly with the visiting artists. When tours come in, we make sure they go to the right spot, and get signed in with their equipment. Then if they need any adjustments to the lighting we try to accommodate them," he said.

"But the best part about the festival has always been listening to the bands," he said with a smile.